Blupi at Home
Blupi at Home (Blupi '' ''à la maison), or sometimes titled just Blupi, is a 1988 educational game starring Blupi where the player can learn the alphabet. It is the first game to feature Blupi as the main character, going back to 1988. Blupi has 26 actions related to which letter key is pressed. There are two different versions of Blupi at Home: the Smaky/DOS version, and the Windows 95 version. The game can be played in English, French, and German. Both versions of the game can now be downloaded for free from the official Blupi website. However, the Smaky/DOS version requires DOSBox to run on computers past Windows ME. Gameplay The game takes place inside Blupi's house. The player can either use any of the letter keys on the keyboard or click on an item using the mouse to have Blupi interact with the item associated with the letter. Blupi will also say something with the letter's word involved. Some letters, like A, F, K, M, Q, and Z will open up a utility (if enabled), with all the mentioned letters but Z leading to games. The letter Z will instead open up a drawing room. If a number key is pressed, the player will be taken to a number-related game. During games, the player can either control with the mouse or the keyboard, with keyboard controls being labeled on the items or actions the player can interact with or do, respectively The player can play with the utilities for as long as possible, with the only way to stop is by quitting to Blupi's house, done with either clicking on Blupi's house's sign situated on either the bottom left or right or pressing the Home (Smaky/DOS) or Esc (Windows) key. The letter A''' ('''Astronaut) will lead to a shadow-matching game. The goal is to match five pairs of cards consisting of an image and its matching shadow. Turning up a wrong pair will cause the chosen cards to turn over again. The letter F '('Friends) will lead to a "spot the odd-man-out" game. In this game, the player is given five Blupi cards, with only one card depicting a different Blupi. Picking this different Blupi card allows the player to proceed to the next round, otherwise it is considered incorrect. The letter K''' will lead to a '''vowels and consonants game. In this game, the player controls Blupi who can either pull or push his cart as a letter falls down. The player has to catch the vowels (A, E, I, O, U) with the cart and avoid the consonants, which stun Blupi if he gets hit by them. The cart can be moved left or right either by moving the mouse the direction the player wants to go or by using the left and right arrow keys. The letter M''' ('''Machine) will lead to a matching pair game. Similar to the letter A game, the goal is to turn up five correct pairs of cards, only in this case the pair consists of identical objects. The game mechanics and controls are also similar to the letter A game. The letter Q''' will lead to a '''matching letter game. Like the letter A and M games, the goal is to find five matching pairs of cards, only in this case the pair consists of the same letter. As this game is mechanically similar to the aforementioned two games, the controls are also the same. The letter Z''' ('''Zigzag) will lead to a drawing room, but this is only possible if the game detects mouse input, otherwise Blupi will not go down the basement. On the drawing board, the left mouse button is used for interacting with the tools as well as the usual drawing or erasing. The Smaky/DOS version has the following tools: Pencil, Stamp, Eraser, Magic. Meanwhile, the Windows version merges the Magic designs into the Pencil tool and adds a "make your own Blupi" tool in the former's place. In either version, the Pencil is used to draw on the board, with its thickness and color being customizable. Obviously, the Windows version allows more thickness options (four instead of two) and colors (seven basic colors plus Smaky/DOS version's Magic's "multicolor line" instead of four) to take advantage of its more advanced graphics display. The Magic tool allows the player to generate a drawing in a specific pattern depending on the implement chosen. The Magic implements include axial symmetry, central symmetry, spray, daisy chain, multicolor line (a setting in the Pencil tool instead in the Windows version), color change (Smaky/DOS only), and radial line (Windows only; located in Pencil tool). The Stamp tool allows the player to place graphics provided by the game onto the drawing board. The Smaky/DOS version features 25 stamp designs, while the Windows version only features 10. Despite the limited choices in the latter version, it makes up for it with its "make your own Blupi" tool, which allows the player to generate a Blupi design with customized body parts (headgear, eyes, nose, body, left arm, right arm, mouth, feet) unlike the Blupi stamps in the former version, which is limited to two designs: one facing front, one facing to the side. The Eraser tool is used to erase a part of the player's drawing, controlled by the player's mouse movement and left mouse button. It comes in two sizes. There are also three additional buttons on the upper right side of the drawing board. The top button will undo the last action performed by the player on the drawing board. The middle button will wipe out the current drawing completely to create a new clean board. The bottom button allows the player to print their drawing, though doing this in the Smaky/DOS version is only possible by connecting a compatible printer first. Pressing a number key will lead to a number game. Depending on the number involved, the game's goal differs, though the base mechanics are the same (ten clickable cards with a number each). The number 1 game involves clicking all cards with the number 1 depicted on them, the catch being that the numbers are written in different styles. Numbers 2, 4, 7, 8, and 9 games involve clicking all cards whose number of dots is the same as the requested number. The numbers 3 and 6 games involve finding the number that matches with the dice block displayed near Blupi. The number 5 game differs between versions. The Smaky/DOS version involves finding the real number 5 among other cards with strange shapes, while the Windows version uses the same game style and goal as the one applied to numbers 2, 4, 7, 8, and 9. Controls *Mouse: Move cursor *Left mouse button: Click on menu buttons; Interact with objects; Draw/Erase in the letter Z utility *Keyboard: Interact with objects Characters Playable characters *Blupi Other characters *Doctor Blupi *Blupi's "friends" *Wasp List of interactive objects Note that the Windows version has an option to show letters in Blupi's house in order to help players know which letter corresponds to which object. References in later games *''Blupi Explorer'' - The elevator system is used a lot to move Blupi between floors, Blupi can lose a life from falling down an elevator chute similar to how he gets knocked out from falling down to the ground floor in the letter "R" action. *''Planet Blupi'' - The jeep appears as one of the Blupis' preferred methods of transport, the medical potion is required to heal Sick Blupis much like the one depicted in the letter "D" action. *''Speedy Blupi'' - The jeep appears as one of the usable vehicles and can even explode (albeit from contact with water/lava). *''Speedy Blupi II ''- The jeep reappears again in this sequel, the Wasp appears as an enemy that causes Blupi to puff up and float if he gets stung. Windows version Blupi at Home gains a Windows version in 1999, released as v2.0 to compliment its graphical and performance advancement, as well as the addition of new features. Aside from upgrades to the drawing room (more color support, merging of certain functionalities, "make your own Blupi" tool, etc.) and other obvious technical advancement/changes, the game features other differences compared to the Smaky/DOS version. Along with the original English, French, and German versions, Italian, Spanish, and Portuguese languages have been added. House layout *The first-aid kit is located to the right of the toy helicopter in the Smaky/DOS version, while the Windows version moved it to the left of said toy. *The gun decor is located between the strange machine and the fridge in the Smaky/DOS version, while the Windows version moved it further left, placing it above the machine. *There appears to be a black rope tying up the metal support near the backdoor in the Smaky/DOS version. This rope is missing in the Windows version. *The two rightmost pipes are separated from each other in the Smaky/DOS version. The two pipes are connected in the Windows version. *The bomb is placed much further right in the Smaky/DOS version compared to the Windows version, where it is right below the hanging picture frame. *Blupi's living room has a sofa in the Smaky/DOS version. It is a small wooden chair instead in the Windows version. Actions *Some depictions have different colors between versions due to the limitations of the respective system's color palette. *The Doctor Blupi is missing the red cross from his hat in the Smaky/DOS version. *The "C" action does not darken most of the house (thus has no spotlight) in the Smaky/DOS version. *The "E" action results in only Blupi's house being destroyed in the Smaky/DOS version. The Windows version first shows Blupi himself covered in soot before showing his destroyed house. Additionally, the former version shows Blupi with a "?" thought bubble before the bomb explodes, while the Windows version immediately shows the explosion as soon as Blupi holds up the bomb. *In the "F" action, Blupi's "friends" simply pop out from their smaller versions as depicted in the picture frame in the Smaky/DOS version, while the Windows version has them literally break through the picture frame, complete with broken glass. The two Blupis are colored differently in the Smaky/DOS version, with one being silver, the other being bronze. The Windows version uses the same yellow color on both, making the complete trio look identical. *In the "I" action, Blupi stays in his sofa when he tries to swat the Wasp in the Smaky/DOS version. The Windows version shows him getting off from his chair with an angry expression instead. *In the "P" action, Blupi jumps onto his sofa first before taking the present box from the bookcase in the Smaky/DOS version. In the Windows version, he simply reaches the present box without the need of his chair. Games *In general, most of the game rooms have different layouts between versions. Notably, the Smaky computer cameo in the numbers game is missing from the Windows version. *The vowels and consonants game has letters raining down in the Smaky/DOS version. The Windows version changed this into letter cards. *The number 5 game involves finding all cards with the actual number 5 among other cards with strange shapes in the Smaky/DOS version. The Windows version made it the same as the games for numbers 2, 4, 7, 8, and 9. User interface *In the Smaky/DOS version, the player is simply presented with the game's title screen when the game is booted up. Pressing "Enter" will immediately place the player in Blupi's house, but if this is the first time the player ever boots up the game, the player will be brought to the language selection screen first instead. The Windows version does not have a menu splash screen. Instead, the player is brought into the game's main menu upon boot up. From there, the player can either click the Play button to start the game, check the Settings, set language, or quit the game. *Quitting the game in the Smaky/DOS version is done by pressing the "Esc" key and then "Y" key when prompted (pressing "N" will bring the player back to the game). In the Windows version, if the player is currently in Blupi's house, the player has to click the "stop" button (or press the "Esc" key) to pause the game, which brings up the menus Play, Settings, and Quit (the latter two options require clicking the respective green button first to unlock the menu before clicking them). Clicking Quit will bring the player back to the main menu, and from there, the option to "Quit BLUPI" (also requires unlocking the button using the green button). Before the player is brought back to Windows, the game will display one splash screen, where clicking or pressing any keys will finally close the game. *The Smaky/DOS version utilizes the F1-F5 keys to open the help screen, change language, turn on/off sounds or music, and turn on/off high speed, The Windows version has a Settings menu where the player can modify the following: **Sound volume, ranges from 0 to 20. **Music volume, ranges from 0 to 20. **Number of colors, can be either 256 or 65,000. **Keyboard, can be either enabled only if action needed or always enabled. **Mouse, can be either disabled, enabled only if action needed, or always enabled. **Enable/Disable games after some actions. **Enable/Disable printing from drawing room. **Show/Hide letters in Blupi's house. Gallery Maison.gif|The Windows version of Blupi at Home. blupis.gif|Demonstration of the "make your own Blupi" tool in the drawing room. gx.gif|A letter corresponds to an action. intrus.gif|The "odd man out" game. (Windows version) BACK000.png|Blupi's house (default). BACK001.png|Blupi's house (destroyed). BACK009.png|Blupi's house (urgent). BACK010.png|Blupi's house (night). BACK013.png|Blupi's house (spotlight). BACK012.png|Blupi's house (flooded). BACK008.png|The beach. BYE.png|The splash screen when quitting the game. Names in other languages Trivia *This is the first Blupi video game. *The DOS manual mentions Blupi Explorer as one of the upcoming games after this game. External links *DOSBox *Old website *Download for the Smaky/DOS version (2.0 MB) *Demo of the Windows 95 version (2.8 MB) *Download for the Windows 95 version (29.8 MB) *Smaky Document *Manual for the Smaky/DOS version (English) *Manual for the Smaky/DOS version (French) *Manual for the Smaky/DOS version (German) Category:Smaky Category:Games Category:Games with downloads